NEWS ARCHIVE

Mil-tek at Empack 2014: A Brief Debriefing

Thursday, 20 November 2014

SPAIN: Miltek were delighted to attend Empack 2014 in Madrid. Fresh from the 2-day event, we sat down with Jacob Bang Nielsen & Leland Luddington, Directors of Mil-tek Spain to talk about the exhibition, about Mil-tek, Spain, waste management and more.

Can you tell us a little about the Empack Exhibition?
Empack Madrid is organized by the company Easyfairs, who organize exhibitions around the world. It is a professional fair centred on the packaging industry. It coincides with two others: Logistics and Packaging Innovation. The fair is held in IFEMA, the largest exhibition centre in Europe outside Germany.

How many years have Mil-tek been attending?
This is our fifth year here in Spain participating in Empack Madrid.

How does this year compare with other years?
This year Empack was held in IFEMA’s newest pavilion and seemed to be significantly better than last year’s exhibition, which had noticeably fewer visitors. On the whole, Empack is an exhibition that we really like as it normally leads to sales each year. We love meeting and inviting customers and potential customers to the exhibition as it is also a great way to stay in contact.

Do you notice any industry trends or key things from the exhibition that stand out in particular?
This year's exhibition, as commented before, seems to have been better than last year's, but the Spanish economy is still struggling. We have to work hard to sell the benefits of Mil-tek, but our focus on LEAN waste handling finally seems to be taken more seriously in all industry sectors as companies realise that savings must be found wherever possible.

You have spoken in the past about collaborating more between the different Empack Exhibitions throughout Europe. How would this work practically from an organizer’s point of view?
Empack is organized by Easyfairs, a leading company in the organization of professional exhibitions around the world. Mil-tek Spain has participated in number of its exhibitions, not just Empack. It seems that Mil-tek globally has participated in exhibitions organized by Easyfairs and maybe Easyfairs could benefit from this with more networking between the different exhibitions. Also, we would love to handle the waste generated at the exhibitions as a way of presenting the benefits of Mil-tek. We haven't been able to realise this yet however: For example, in Empack Madrid a British company provides all the waste bins.

A visitor comes to your stand. You have 30 seconds to tell them about Mil-tek. What do you say?
Mil-tek can save you money, time and space by helping you handle your waste more effectively and efficiently. In a study that we carried out in a client’s factory we showed how, by strategically placing Mil-tek balers close to unpacking areas, they have now saved more than 25,000kms in forklift journeys and 5,000 man-hours dedicated to handling, carryin and moving cardboard and plastic waste. It's a proven, cost-effective solution. That was under 30 seconds, right?

There’s always lots of good freebies at exhibitions- what’s on offer at the Mil-tek stand?
Food and refreshments, beer and wine! There are always lots of exhibition junkies who just go around just looking for pens, caps and other freebies. We prefer to engage with contacts that are truly looking for a solution to their waste management problem. So take a glass, park up, and let's have a chat.

What was your overall impression of the exhibition?
Really positive, really upbeat. We made a number of really good contacts distributed throughout Spain. Even though I've extolled the benefits of Mil-tek a thousands times before, it's so refreshing to see the response of companies who discover us for the first time.

And Empack 2015….?
Oh absolutely, we'll be there!

Jacob Bang Nielsen & Leland Luddington are Directors of Mil-tek Spain. They were in conversation with Darragh Groeger.

Read more about Mil-tek Spain.
Connect with Leland or Jacob on LinkedIn
Read more about Empack here.

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